Two Minutes – the Ideal Time to Brush

To promote good dental health in your infants and toddlers, it’s never too early to start caring for their teeth.  The experts at Triangle Pediatric Dentistry suggest cleaning your child’s gums with a soft infant toothbrush or cloth and water starting at birth. As soon as the baby teeth are coming in, start brushing twice daily using a “pea-sized” amount of fluoridated toothpaste and a soft, age-appropriate sized toothbrush.

Young children do not have the ability to brush their teeth effectively and assistance will be very important.  As children become toddlers they will have the inclination to try and brush their primary teeth by themselves. However, in this 2-5-year-old age group you should still perform or assist with your child’s toothbrushing still using only a “pea-size” amount of toothpaste. It is fine to let them go ahead and brush, but you’ll want to follow behind to make sure they hit every primary tooth – including those baby molar teeth –  and “touch up” the areas that were missed. The general rule we always use for determining when a child can brush their teeth effectively is that if they can tie their own shoes then they can brush their own primary teeth. Children that can tie their own shoes should have the manual dexterity necessary to effectively clean their own teeth.

The key to brushing a young child’s teeth is the brushing position. If you have two people available to help with brushing, then that is ideal. Two people can brush a child’s teeth in the knee to knee position. The two adults should sit facing each other with their knees almost touching. The child can sit in one adult’s lap facing them. Then, the child can be leaned back onto the lap of the other adult providing easy access for brushing. If there is just one adult available for brushing, then you can try to have your child lie down on a bed with his/her head in your lap. Another alternative is to have you child sit with his/her body between your legs and his/her head tilted back into your arms. It is a lot easier to brush young children’s teeth in these above-mentioned positions than trying to brush with them standing with the parent coming from directly in front of the child.

Once your children begin brushing their own primary teeth and baby molar teeth, parents still need to monitor to make sure that children are brushing correctly. Everyone should brush their teeth 2-3 times daily for 2 minutes each time. It is very important to brush before bedtime and after your child brushes before going to bed they should not have anything else to eat or drink besides water.

The primary teeth should be brushed gently using small circular motions. Make sure that the areas where the teeth meet the gums are including in the circular motions to ensure that the gums stay health as well. For brushing to most effective every time, it can be helpful to develop a brushing sequence that can be repeated every time. Start by brushing the outside surfaces of all of the teeth. Next brush the inside surfaces of all of the teeth. Finally, brush the chewing surfaces of the teeth. Remember to use small circular motions and take two minutes to brush your teeth. If children are having a hard time brushing for the whole two minutes, then consider using a timer and playing a song that they like for two minutes while they brush. There are many toothbrushes that can be purchased that will play music for two minutes while you brush your teeth.

Proper brushing is necessary to protect your child’s primary teeth, baby molar teeth and baby back teeth.  For more information about technique, length of time to brush and more, contact Triangle Pediatric Dentistry for an appointment today.